Okage:Shadow Queen
by LuigiPenPal23
Summary: What would the adventure be like if Ari was a girl? A retlling of Okage from Ari's more feminine side. After all, a girl who's shadow's been possessed by the king of darkness has a few more problems than your average teenager...
1. The Girl

Chapter 1- The Girl

Disclaimer: I don't own Okage: Shadow King or any of its characters.

"I am a doting mother, a beautiful wife, and a successful cook! Who doesn't want a piece of me?" The red-headed woman smiled to herself. It was just another normal day in her perfectly normal life. She was cooking a normal dinner, for a normal family, who all led normal lives. Sounds kinda dull, huh?

"Oh! Something smells good!"

A young, blonde-haired girl walked into the kitchen. She was the youngest daughter in the normal family. "So what is it mom?" she asked.

"You'll just have to wait to find out Annie." The mother smiled back.

"Oh come on mom! That's so lame!" Annie snapped back.

Suddenly there was a small creak by the door. The mother and Annie turned around to see none other than the other child in the family.

"Ari! What are you doing waking up so late? You've already slept through breakfast and lunch! Nobody wants to marry a lazy spouse! And how many times have I told you to speak up? You almost gave me a heart attack!" The mother scolded.

"Hey big sis! Do you know what mom's cooking?" Annie asked.

Ari thought about it for a minute. "Soup?" she guessed.

"The answer is:" Mom began. "You'll have to find out tonight!"

"Aw Mom, that was really lame!" Annie sighed.

"I forgot!" Mom gasped. "Can one of you two do me a favor?"

Ari was just about to say that she was busy when Annie butted in.

"Actually mom I have some work to do. I can't let my education go to waste, now can I? I'm sure Ari can do it." She smiled and ran out the door.

"_When did she ever care about her education?"_ Ari thought but didn't say anything.

"Ari, you're such a good girl. Now listen close, I need you to run to the bakery and pick up a loaf of bread for dinner tonight. The cost should be put on my tab. And here's some sukel if you need to get anything while your out. Hurry back." Mom gave Ari one thousand sukel then went back to her cooking. Ari sighed; she so didn't want to do this.

As Ari walked out the front door she saw Annie reading a book. She walked over to her and crossed her arms.

"Where's your work?" she sneered.

Annie shrieked and dropped the book. "Ari! I didn't expect to see you here!"

Ari bent over and picked up the book. She read the title out loud: "Controlling Guys Made Easy. Where did you get this trash?"

"Mom gave it to me for my birthday. The book says I should brush up on my feminine arts while I'm still young." Annie explained.

Ari felt crushed. The only thing she ever got for her birthday from mom was a big breakfast and a hundred sukel.

"I'm going out on a date tonight with Morris. I'll be back a little later than usual so don't worry about me." Annie snatched the book back from Ari. "See ya tonight."

Annie went out the front gate and disappeared behind the corner. Ari groaned. Her little sister was learning how to wrap men around her little finger…great.

Ari slowly went down to the gate. As she began to open the lock she felt a strange breeze go by. A strange chill ran through her body, almost as if to warn her of something. But it went away as soon as it came. Ari shook it off and went out the gate to the village of Tenel.

Ari was by no means a beautiful girl. Cute, yes. Beautiful, no. She had long orange-red hair. On top of it was a large purple head band which restrained her hair from flying in her face. She wore a blue and white striped t-shirt and a black, short-sleeved jacket over that. She had only a hint of a bosom, which was why so many people mistook her for a boy. On her hands were black fingerless gloves and on her legs were khaki pants with a multi-colored design. Around her hips, or lack there of, was a belt that held a sack where she kept her money and whatever else she needed. Add on a pair of black sneakers and you had Ari's favorite outfit.

Ari was unpopular, ignored, and ostracized by most of the boys in the town. She had no luck with winning men's hearts. She had no charms or assets. Ari was as thin as a stick and about as curvy as one too. Even if there was no way that any of the boys in town would like her she still had one chance.

As Ari walked into Tenel she saw a familiar face out of the corner of her eye. There by the gate was none other than Ari's childhood friend Jude. Ari felt her face begin to blush. This was the only guy in Tenel that liked her and she had to make the most of it.

"Hi Jude." Ari smiled. Jude didn't answer.

"Jude?" Ari poked him in the arm.

"Um…er…oh! Hey Ari!" Jude snapped back into reality.

"Hi Jude!" Ari didn't get Jude sometimes.

"Did you hear there's going to be a circus performance tonight?" He asked. Ari shook her head. "Well, there is. Do you want me to ask you out?"

Ari felt butterflies zip around in her stomach. She wanted to scream: YES YES YES! But all that came out was: "Sure."

"Sorry Ari." Jude laughed. "But I already asked out someone else. Maybe you should try to wake up earlier. I promise you a date next time something like this rolls around. And um…I have to talk to you about something but not right now. Tomorrow though. Okay?"

Before Ari could agree he walked off. Ari felt like a 400 pound weight was just thrown on her. Tears welled up in her eyes. How could he do something like this?

Defeated, she trudged off to the bakery. Inside the baker was busy watching her oven. "Excuse me." Ari whispered. She didn't move.

"Excuse me." Ari raised her voice a little. Still no answer.

"EXCUSE ME!" Ari yelled with all her might. The baker spun around.

"Oh Ari! How many times do I have to tell you to speak up? I supposed you're here for that loaf. Well here it is. Tell your mom I said hi." The baker dropped a warm loaf of bread into Ari's hands then went back to watching the oven. Ari walked out the door.

When Ari got back home she saw Annie at the door. "You're late." She was stating the obvious.

"Sorry." Ari mumbled.

"That's alright. The circus doesn't start for another hour anyway. Oh yeah, and Dad found this funky looking bottle today. Why don't you take a look at it?" Annie opened the door for her sister.

Inside the kitchen everyone was sitting down. Dad, Grandpa, and Grandma were all waiting for them. In the center of the table was a funny looking, pink bottle. Ari sat the loaf of bread down and took his seat. Annie did the same. Mom brought out hot soup from the kitchen. "Eat up!" she smiled.

Ari's mind was too preoccupied with the bottle though. She stared at it with all curiosity. Unlike the other trinkets her father brought home, this one looked interesting…if not suspicious.

After everyone was done Dad walked over to Ari. "I want to talk to you for a minute in the basement." He whispered. Ari gave him a confused glance but he didn't notice.

Ari walked down to the dark, dirty basement. She cautiously opened the door. Her father waited patiently inside.

"Ari! Come in. I want to talk to you about this bottle." Dad began holding the pink bottle.

"But Dad the circus is going to start." Ari retorted.

"It'll only take a minute. First off, after much research I have determined that this is none other than Pollock's bottle. Pollock, you see, was a man of myth that existed long ago."

"But Dad…"

"Now legend tells us that if you heat up garlic to about 300 degrees, or was it 500, no it was 300…"

Ari sighed. All she could do was hope that this would end soon.

Two hours later:

"And as you can see this bottle…"

"Dad! I want to go to the circus!" Ari lashed out.

"Oh! I'm sorry. Go on and go. I'll tell you the rest later." Dad nodded.

Ari burst out f the basement and in world record time ran out the front door, past Tenel, and arrived at the circus grounds…only to find the place completely empty.

"Sorry kid, shows over." A voice slurred. Ari turned around to see a pudgy man by the entrance of the circus. By his outfit she could tell he was the ringmaster. Ari groaned and started to walk away.

"Kid! Wait! Come back over here!" the ringmaster yelled. Ari turned back around and walked over to him. She could smell alcohol on his breath.

"Kid I wanted to tell you that you've got a thin shadow. Be very careful, something might just happen to ya." The ringmaster nodded his head and walked off. Ari stood there completely confused. What in God's name was this guy talking about.

"**AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!**"

Ari jumped. She knew that scream better than anyone. Annie!

Ari dashed from the circus grounds and back to the house. There laid Annie, motionless on the ground. Hovering over top of her was a ghost! Ari stood still, paralyzed by fear. Was Annie…

Suddenly the gate to the house burst open. Out walked Dad with a stick. The ghost ran off. Ari ran over to her sister, she was breathing. That was good. But…

"Ari, go get the doctor." Dad ordered. Ari followed the order and ran into town.

Ari waited helplessly outside of Annie's room. The door opened and the doctor walked out. Ari went in.

Her mother was sobbing into her husband's arms. Grandma was holding tight on to Grandpa. What was going on?

"Mom." Ari whispered.

"Oh Ari it's terrible! It's worse than we could imagine!" Ari felt her stomach begin to tighten.

"Is Annie going to be okay?" Ari asked.

"No. She's not." Mom cried.

"Mom, what's wrong with her?" Ari felt tears begin to well up in her eyes.

"Ari, Annie's got the Pig Latin Curse!"


	2. The King

Chapter 2- The King

Ari stood there dumbfounded.

"That's it?" Ari groaned. "You had me all worried that Annie was gonna die and all it is is a stupid Pig Latin curse?"

"What do you mean 'that's it'?" Mom growled. "Annie will never be a beautiful princess! Now she has to be a comic relief girl!" She began to sob again. Ari rolled her eyes; her mother was the biggest drama queen in town.

Annie eyes began to flutter. Finally they opened wide.

"Istersay, atwhay isay oinggay onay? Ywhay maay alkingtay osay unnyfay?" Annie squealed in terror.

The Pig Latin curse, I used to play that as a boy. We used to have so much fun." Grandpa smiled.

"Uh huh, that's right dear." Grandma agreed.

"I used to play it too!" Dad grinned. "Owhay uchmay unfay atthay asway!"

Ari gaped at her family. Had they all gone mad? One minute they were freaking out about Annie, the next they were laughing like crazy people.

"Guys." Mom shouted. Everyone kept on laughing.

"GUYS!" Mom was angry, and when she was angry she got scary. "ANNIE IS IN TROUBLE! DOES ANYONE KNOW HOW TO CURE HER?"

"Actually I do." Dad became very serious. "But it requires a great sacrifice. Ari, would you be willing to sell your soul to save Annie?"

Ari gave him a funny look. "But it's just a Pig Latin…" she began.

"Good. Everyone, follow me to the basement."

All of the family, except for Annie, was crowded together in the tiny basement. On the floor was a strange symbol.

Dad stepped into the center of the floor. In his hands was the pink bottle.

"Listen up, this bottle is called Pollock's bottle. The being inside this bottle will be able to cure Annie. To awaken this being I must perform the sacred ritual. I drew up a magic circle a long time ago in case anything like this happened. But let me warn you. I don't know what will happen when this bottle is opened." And with that Dad commenced the ritual.

Ari stared in total embarrassment at her Dad. First off he was dancing around the room ala the chicken dance. Second, he was chanting some bad open-mike night poetry that sounded like some macabre kindergartener wrote it. This got Ari to start thinking: What _was_ in that bottle?

When he ended in a heroic like pose nothing happened. Ari was skeptical that her father's "ritual" would produce anything. After a minute the bottle still didn't move. Ari was about to leave the room when something made her stop.

The bottle moved!

Slowly but surely it began to shake and gradually it shook harder and harder until…

_**POP!**_

Out of a cloud of smoke walked the absolute strangest thing Ari had ever seen.

It wore a bright baby blue tux with a little red bow tie. It stood at attention. And it had a skull with two giant horns for a head.

"Hello there happy family!" It grinned. "I am James, the evil butler."

"Hi James!" the family smiled in unison. Ari felt like she was going to scream.

"So how can I help you today?" James smiled.

"We need all the help you can give; you see my daughter is on her death bed." Mom explained.

"It's not quite that bad." Grandpa butted in. Mom gave him an evil glare.

"Anyway, we need you to save our daughter." Mom asked.

"You're going to need my master for something like that. Give me a moment; he's still asleep in the bottle." James bent over the bottle.

Ari watched in disbelief. There was still something in that bottle…

"Master." James smiled. No response.

"Master?" James poked the bottle. Still no response.

"Master!" James picked up the bottle and shook it with all of his might. He gently sat the bottle back down.

It groaned.

Ari heard herself let out a scream. There was something in that bottle!

"Aren't you going to introduce me James?" a low, evil sounding voice asked.

"Yes." James cleared his throat. "I introduce to you the greatest, most evil being to ever walk the planet: King Stanley Hihat Trinidad XIV!" A loud cheer erupted from the people in the room.

"Thank you, thank you," Stan smiled. "But let's get to the matter in question. You said you need me to cure your daughter?"

"Yes." Mom agreed.

"I will grant your wish. But I require payment in return. I will need one of you to be my slave, servant, and follower for the rest of your life. Any objections?"

"No."

"None here."

"Fine with me."

"Uh huh, that's right dear."

"_What is wrong with you people?" _Ari thought furiously. "_You're all going to give up your souls to the thing in the bottle just so we can cure a Pig Latin curse?"_

"Seeing that there are no objections let's begin. You see Master Stan has been trapped in this bottle for quite some time." James clarified.

"Three centuries to be exact." Stan added in.

"A long time ago he was a powerful man named Gohma." James began acting like he was teaching a bunch of school children.

"You mean Gohma, the man who destroyed half of the planet?" Dad asked.

"Right on, old man!" Stan smiled.

"But Gohma was killed by a man named Hopkins." James continued.

"A minor setback. But nothing to be overlooked." Stan explained.

"Master Stan is the reincarnation of Gohma. But being that he's been stuck in a bottle for three centuries, he's quite weak. He needs a vessel that he can possess so he can regain his powers. In other words, he needs a shadow." James sighed. "So! Let us begin the first ever Shadow Cup!"

Out of nowhere two ghosts floated into the room. "Alright! I need all of you to form a line right by this wall!" James commanded. "Hurry up!"

Everyone formed a line by the wall. Ari reluctantly walked to the end of the line. "Please don't let it be me." Ari prayed. "Oh please don't let it be me."

Ari was next. Mom daintily walked over to the judges. They deliberated amongst themselves.

"She's really close but…"

"She'd be perfect if it wasn't for…"

Both the ghosts and James stared at Mom's hips. Ari knew her mother had slightly wide hips but this was just ridiculous.

"I'm sorry but it was a near miss. There was a slight problem with your figure." James apologized. "If only you had been five years younger. But I think you're perfect."

Ari groaned. It was one thing for a man to flirt with mom, but it was an entirely other matter when a dead butler did.

"Next up is the family son, Ari!" James announced. Ari wanted to correct him but she was too tired to do it.

Ari walked up to the judges and stood motionless hoping her prayers would be answered.

"Oh my! He's perfectly overshadowed!"

"Yes, it's amazing!"

"It's unanimous folks! Perfect scores from both of the judges!" James grinned. "I give you the winner of the first Shadow Cup: Ari!"

Ari suddenly felt sick in her stomach.

"Yeah Ari!"

"You go kid!"

"Wait to go Ari!"

"Uh huh, that's right dear."

Despite the cheers from her family Ari didn't feel any better. It made her feel ten times worse.

The bottle began to shake. From out of the top a small black sphere floated out. Ari watched in terror as it hovered over to her shadow and flew right into it. Ari dropped to the floor in fear.

From out of the shadow the creature rose. It had two pointy ears and glowing yellow eyes. Across its face was an evil smirk.

It reminded Ari of her old teddy bear.

"This is just perfect!" Stan smiled. "From now on you will be my slave, servant and subordinate for the rest of your life!"

"Mr. Snuggles?" Ari mumbled. She felt herself begin to smile. Suddenly it became a giggle. Ari ran over to the corner to repress her humor.

"See! My slave shakes in terror at me!" Stan gloated.

"_Your slave shakes in laughter!"_ Ari bit her lip hard to stifle the chuckling.

"Now let's go cure your daughter!" Stan ordered.

Inside Annie's room everyone watched as Stan analyzed Annie.

"It's just a crappy spell cast by a ghost, one of those lowly beings. Easily undone, now stand back and watch in awe as I free your daughter from this joke of a curse!" Stan snapped his fingers. Nothing seemed to happen. Ari swore she heard a little _ping_ sound but no one else noticed it. Suddenly Annie sat bolt upright.

"What just happened?" she exclaimed.

Everyone in the room applauded in delight. Mom ran over and hugged Annie. "Oh Stan! I can't thank you enough!" she cried.

"Don't thank me! Fear my absolute power!" Stan steamed.

Annie jumped out of bed and did a little dance. "Tra la la la lah la! I can speak normal now, I can speak normal now!"

"Oh Annie I'm so happy for you!" Dad smiled.

"Annie, sweetie, you're going to grow up to be a fine woman." Grandpa began. "And I couldn't be more…huh? Annie what's wrong with your shadow?"

Annie looked down and screamed in horror.

Her shadow was pink!

"Oops…" Stan giggled sheepishly. "I seemed to have made a miscalculation."

"EEK! What did you do to her?" Mom shrieked advancing on Stan.

"Hey! I never said I wouldn't turn her shadow pink!" he argued.

"Oh no. Now she _will_ end up being a comic relief girl!" Mom screamed and then fainted to the floor.

"Honey!" Dad ran to her side.

"MY SHADOW! IT'S PINK! NOW I'LL NEVER BE ABLE TO GO OUT WITH ANYBODY!" Annie wailed.

Ari hid her head in her hands. This was going to be a long night…

_Ari ran as fast as she could. She knew it was behind her. Catching up to her every second. Getting closer and closer…_

_Finally she couldn't feel it anymore. She stopped and turned around._

_AND THERE IT WAS!_

_**SLAM!**_

Ari grabbed the side of her head. She had fallen out of her bed onto the floor. The one side of her body ached. But she smiled nonetheless.

It was all a dream.

On the floor was a very normal shadow. No yellow eyes or pointy things. No Stan. No Mr. Snuggles.

Ari sighed in relief. "Thank you God!"

She began to kiss her shadow over and over again. This was the start of a beautiful day!

Ari briskly walked downstairs humming a tune. She sniffed the air. Nothing was cooking. Maybe Mom overslept for a change.

Ari opened the front door. The bright, warm sunshine greeted her. Ari walked out and stretched her limbs. She might even go to Tenel today and confess her love for Jude. This was a good day.

"Today is such a beautiful day! I don't have to worry about anything. It was all a dream last night, right? That's what you're thinking." An evil, sinister sounding voice snickered. From out of Ari's shadow jumped up none other than Stan.

"Sorry to burst your bubble slave but it did all happen. Your sister's shadow turned pink, your mother fainted, and you became my servant for all eternity." Ari looked hopelessly at Stan. This was the start of a dreadful day.

"So tell me boy…" Stan instigated.

"Girl." Ari mumbled. If she was going to be this guy's slave for the rest of her life he might as well know her gender.

"I'm sorry slave I didn't quite get that." Stan leaned a little closer to Ari.

"I'm a girl." Ari stated simply.

For a whole minute Stan started blankly at Ari. Then he began to twitch. Finally he just let it all out.

"JAMES!" Stan bellowed.

In a poof of smoke James appeared. "It's such a nice fragrant morning. What do you need James for oh beloved Master Stan?"

"Explain to me why my slave is of the female gender. And do it in thirty words or less." Stan commanded.

"Master you must be joking, Ari's not a…" James looked a little closer at Ari's chest. He jumped back in surprise. "I seemed to have missed that little detail!"

"James, how many times did I tell you I do not, and I repeat, DO NOT want a woman for a slave?" Stan fumed.

"Please Master Stan; you must understand I didn't know." Ari felt like walking away. She knew she looked like a boy but she didn't need to be reminded by the dead butler guy.

"James, do you remember what happened three years ago? Do you want it to happen again?"

"Master! Listen to me. The girl's shadow is absolutely perfect. Do you want to go back into the bottle another three hundred centuries waiting for a boy to come along with a shadow as good as this? I don't think so. And another thing: Ari's quiet. She'll go along obeying your orders and never as questions. Plus, she's as thin as a twig! No fat parts on her. Just give her a chance Master. Pretty please?" James begged.

"You went over thirty words. But I see where you're going with this. I'll keep her, but next time James remember who you're talking to." Stan nodded.

"Of course, sir. James is always here to support your evil doings. OH! I just recalled what I was going to ask you. What are you planning to do today?"

"I plan to take the nearby town of Tenel and drive it into a mass of chaos and despair!" Stan answered. Ari was ready to defend her little town but she realized Stan could probably kill her on the spot if she did. So she remained silent.

"Sounds like a great plan Master. Have you had anything to eat?" James asked.

"James, I'm a shadow, I can't eat." Stan replied coldly.

"It's a shame, you're missing out. Madame's omelet is the best."

"James, I'll be in town." Stan rolled his eyes.

"And I'll be right there cheering you on. After I finish my omelet." James walked off and disappeared into the wall.

Ari wanted to warn James about what exactly Mom put in her Omelet Surprise but it was too late.

"Slave girl! I command you to go to Tenel so I can begin my world conquest!" Stan ordered.

Ari began the descent to the town. Somehow she knew things were going to get a lot worse than this.


	3. Ari's New Trick

Chapter 3- Ari's New Trick

"So slave, tell me about the pathetic town of Tenel." Stan ordered. Ari sighed. There wasn't really that much to tell but…

"Tenel has a population of about forty-five. It's a quiet, peaceful village. Nothing ever happens there." Ari explained.

"Hmph! I'll be glad when I wipe it off the map. Continue on slave, don't wait around!" Stan snapped.

Ari obeyed and continued down the path to the town. It was surprisingly quiet outside, no birds chirping or bugs buzzing. Ari began to feel uneasy. Something was waiting around the corner. A ghost, a madman, or maybe even…

"ARI!"

Ari let out a scream. She turned around to see one of the guys from the village.

"Sorry if I scared you Ari. But your dad's been going around telling everybody you can do a cool new trick!" the guy smiled brightly.

Stan nearly leapt out of the shadow. "A new trick? Slave why didn't you tell me?" he sounded excited.

"Wow! Cool!" the guy marveled. "That's so awesome! I'm gonna tell all my friends about this!" With that he ran off.

"Huh, I don't get it." Stan was disappointed. Pouting he went back into the shadow.

Ari blushed seven shades of red and put her head in her hands. How could her dad do this to her? He knew she hated attention so why was he telling everybody in town about Stan?

Ari pondered this as she drudged toward the town. Everything had happened so fast. Annie, the ghost, James, the contest, Stan…it was all just one big blur in Ari's mind. Yesterday she was just a normal girl living a quiet, peaceful life but now she was the servant and slave of her shadow who looked like her old, deranged teddy bear.

"God, this sucks." She sighed.

Suddenly Ari saw something out of the corner of her eye. She looked to see an old woman crying. Ari walked over to the old woman.

"Can you help me?" the woman sobbed. "My hat got stuck up in this tree. It was the last gift my late husband gave to me. I don't know what I'll do if I lose it."

Ari looked up. Sure enough, there was a hat caught on the end of a branch.

Stan popped out from the shadow. "I think it's time for a demonstration of my powers. Now watch slave as I terrify this old windbag with my elasticity!"

Ari watched as Stan stretched himself up to the tree and grabbed the hat. He shrank back down and tossed the hat at the old woman. She stood gaping at Stan.

"See girl, this old woman is stunned speechless by my malevolent powers." Stan gloated. "Now hurry on…"

"Are you an angel?" the old woman interrupted.

"NO! I'm the master of darkness and…" Stan steamed.

"You must be sent from God!" the old woman smiled.

"GET IT THROUGH YOUR PUNY, INSIGNIFICANT BRAIN YOU OLD BAG I AM NOT…"

"Oh thank the heavens! Thank you God! Oh bless you kind angel! You truly are the bringer of peace and love!" The old woman gleamed. "I'm going to town to tell everyone about the wonderful angel in your shadow Ari!"

Ari and Stan watched wide-eyed as she ran off toward town.

"Slave," Stan growled. "Make a note that she is the first one to die."

"What's wrong with being the bringer of peace and love?" Ari smirked.

"Slave, it is my duty in life to bring chaos and discord raging down on all the towns on this pathetic planet. Not to prance around bringing happiness and joy to all. And if _YOU _even suggest I should change my ways I'll…" Stan fumed.

"Forget I said anything!" Ari exclaimed in self-defense.

"Good girl. Now isn't there a town you should be going to?" Stan smiled in victory.

"Yes, master." Ari sighed. And with that she went back onto the path.

Right as she got to the gate she saw a boy from her school waving to her. Ari walked over to him.

"Hey! Your Dad's been going around telling everybody that you have this kind shadow that saved your sister from death. Is it true?" the guy asked.

Stan popped back out. "First off I am the almighty evil and you will address me as master! Second off…"

The guy stood gaping at Stan.

"See slave, the dark raging fire that is my unyielding evil freezes his soul." Stan grinned. Ari gave him a confused glance.

"HOLY CRAP IT TALKS!" The boy jumped up and down. "AND HE TELLS JOKES! TELL ME ANOTHER ONE!"

"Hey, don't get fresh with me, suckling! Do you know who you're talking to!" Stan growled.

"Okay, I think it's a good idea we get going. I'll see you in school tomorrow." Ari waved and quickly ran toward the gate to Tenel.

"See ya Ari! And bring the shadow guy tomorrow too! When everybody sees him you'll be the most popular girl in school! I'm gonna tell everybody you've got a special surprise in store for em!"

When she got to the gate she slammed them open and dashed in. Ari pushed the gates shut and snuck into the shadows. She sat down and groaned. Not only will the entire town know about Stan but so will all the kids that go to school. Ari began to hyperventilate, she couldn't take the attention. Ari would never forget that day in Elementary School…

_It was show and tell that day and everybody was excited. But there was no one as excited as Ari. Today was the day she would show the entire class her most favorite stuffed animal in the entire world, you guessed it, Mr. Snuggles. When it was time for Ari to present she ran up to the front of the class and lifted up Mr. Snuggles for everybody to see. _

_There was a long silence that followed._

_Then they began to laugh._

_One by one every kid started to laugh at the stupid, little teddy bear. Even the teacher began to giggle! Ari felt tears well up in her eyes. In her tiny mind she assumed they couldn't have been laughing at Mr. Snuggles; he was the greatest thing in the entire world. They all had to be laughing at her!_

_The tears poured from Ari's eyes as she ran out of the school and into the woods. She collapsed into the trunk of a tree and just sat there crying. Ari's Mom found her an hour later. She took Ari by the hand and led her back home. It was then Ari decided to avoid as much attention as possible so no one could laugh at her again._

Ari felt a pain begin to ache in her chest and cold tears form in her eyes. It made her sad just remembering that day. Ari was about to start crying when from out of the shadows popped Stan.

"Slave, I don't get it." He moped. "When I appeared in this world humans were supposed to quake with fear and swear their allegiance. Why are they acting like this?"

"Acting like what?" Ari voice was shaking. She hoped Stan wouldn't notice.

"_Acting like what?" _Stan mocked. "Like they were just acting five minutes ago! Did you not notice that every single villager we've met has thought I was some form of entertainment? For three hundred years I was cooped up in an ugly pink bottle. Now, when I've finally come out, not a single person in this world fears me! I'm not the ruler of all evil; I'm an angel, a joke, a kind spirit who saved the life of a little girl. DO YOU THINK I WANT TO BE PART OF THAT LOAD OF CRAP! I…"

Suddenly Ari heard something. "Shh!" Ari put up her hand to stop Stan.

"Oh this is the icing on the top of the cake! I'm now supposed to take orders from my slave! You hear that world, a king is supposed to take orders from his minion."

"No really, could you be quiet. Something's wrong." Ari peeked out from behind the bush she had been hiding behind.

On the road were two men. One looked really scared, the other one looked horribly nervous.

"The water supply's been shut off! What are we going to do?"

"I don't know! There's no way I can run a hotel without water! I'll have to go close down. I hope the water comes back on or else we'll all be out of business."

Ari watched as the one man walked toward the hotel. She slowly crawled out of the bush and walked over to the other man. "Did you say the water's been shut off?"

"Yes!" The man chattered his teeth. "And you won't believe what turned it off!"

"What?" Ari asked.

"A g…gh…ghost!" The man shouted.

"A ghost?" Stan came out from the shadow. "Oh, one of those lower class beings. There's no reason to be afraid of them, for I am the ruler of all darkness, Evil King Stan!"

"By the way, nice shadow Ari. But what are we going to do about that ghost? There's no way anybody will go in there!"

This time around, it was Stan that gaped. "I'm not as scary as a ghost?...WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU, YOU FAT, UGLY, USELESS, PIG-BRAINED…"

"I don't know sir." Ari did her best to ignore Stan. "But if the water doesn't come back on soon, we'll be in a terrible mess."

"I know!" The villager agreed. "And there's that legendary treasure that resides by the water pipe. If someone was to go in there…"

"LIVER SPOTTED, GERM INFESTED, DISG…did you say treasure?"

Ari had a bad feeling she knew where this was going.

"Yeah, a treasure! It's supposed to be really old and it's probably worth a lot of money." The villager explained.

"Say no more pathetic villager. My slave Ari and I will take care of the ghost!" Stan smiled.

"But…" Ari tried to interfere.

"That's great! The water line is in the basement of the church but you'll have to get the key from town hall. Good luck!" The villager walked off.

It took every ounce of energy in her to control the wrath she was about to unleash on Stan.

Before Stan could even order her to Ari began toward town hall.

The walk was short and quick. At the end of Tenel was town hall and the church. Ari approached town hall and entered its doors.

"Hey Ari! Come to visit your Dad at work?"

Ari was greeted by the smiling face of her father.

"_If I didn't know better I'd wipe that smile right off of your face."_ Ari thought.

"No Dad, I need the key to the church. You see Stan and I are going to…"

"Save the village from the evil ghost? Ari, sweetheart, I'm so proud of you! You've grown up into quite the adventurer. You're just like your mother when she was that age. Let me go get that key for you." Dad rushed toward his desk. From the top drawer he produced a small, silver key. He came back over and handed the key to Ari.

"Now remember, be careful down there. It was locked for a reason you know. I've got to get back to work, so good luck and make sure you don't get killed." Dad kissed Ari on the forehead and went back to his desk.

Ari sighed in disgust. If there was one thing her father wasn't, it was comforting.

Outside Ari walked over to the church and unlocked the door. As Ari walked in the door slammed behind her.

_Gulp._

She walked over to the only door in the church.

"This has to be the one to the basement." Ari shook.

"You're quite the perceptive one slave. Once I've finished getting rid of this ghost I'll prove to the village I am the Lord of Darkness once and for all." Stan grinned evilly.

Ari cautiously curved her hand around the knob. Slowly she twisted it until the door began to open.

Ari looked down the dank staircase and saw nothing but shadow. For a minute Ari couldn't move. But soon she found a scrap of courage left inside of her and began her descent down the dark and eerie stairwell.


End file.
